Dissociation

“Oooooh, I’m coming, I’m coming…” murmured Octavia sleepily as she made her way slowly down the stairs.

The incessant knocking on the front door was becoming more and more persistent and desperate the longer it went on and more than a few times Octavia had wondered just who was knocking on her door at such an early hour. Not that it had actually woken her up; she had been unable to sleep ever since she had found out about Fleur’s murder. She had spent each night lying awake and staring at the ceiling as memories of old had flooded her mind. Despite her sorrow though she hadn’t taken a single drink, Fleur would have wanted it that way.

As she reached the door she raised a hoof to wipe her eyes, well aware that the constant tears and lack of personal grooming over the last few days had left her face looking a mess. The knocking ceased as she slid the locking bolt back and twisted the handle.

“H-Hello, how can I…” she began in a sleepy tone as the door opened.

“Miss Melody! Thank goodness you’re safe! It’s Lieutenant Fair Breeze, I need to speak with you immediately!” came a quick response from the other side.

Octavia was a little stunned at first, her lack of sleep resulting in it taking longer for her brain to process the information. Safe? Was she in danger? What was the lieutenant doing here at this time in a morning? She shook her head slightly and then opened the door fully to reveal the guard pony himself.

“Miss, I’m sorry for disturbing…by Celestia what happened to your face?” exclaimed Fair Breeze as he got his first look at Octavia.

The earth pony sleepily raised a hoof to her left eye which was currently swollen, black and stung like crazy.

“I…I fell out of bed,” she replied sleepily as she gave her eye a gentle rub.

Fair Breeze gave a sigh of relief, “Thank goodness, as I was saying Miss I’m sorry to disturb you but I must speak with you immediately.”

“I…well I suppose you can come in,” replied the earth pony as she stepped aside.

Fair Breeze stepped across the threshold cautiously, casting his vision in all directions as if searching for something.

“Um…is something wrong?” she asked slowly.

“You’ve not heard anything have you? No odd noises? Noticed anything unusual?”

“Um...no, no I haven’t why?”

Fair Breeze didn’t reply as he headed into the lounge and again slowly checked every corner of the room before sitting himself down. Octavia followed him in, sitting herself down nearby. For a moment she studied him, he looked tense and alert, very different to the previous time she had seen him. As she watched he finally gave a sigh and relaxed a little.

“I’m sorry for being so blunt ma’am but I have a very serious matter to discuss with you,” he said calmly, “Firstly though, how are you feeling?”

“I’m alrig…no that would be lying,” began Octavia as she shook her head, “S-Since we last spoke I have spent most of my time sobbing into a pillow. I haven’t really been able to sleep and when I wake up I don’t feel any more rested than I did before. I…I just can’t believe she’s dead, Fleur and I have been friends for years and she was always there for me when I needed her…and now…”

“I’m sorry ma’am, I know this is a hard time for you…but I do have some more news for you and…”

“Did you find out who killed her?!” interrupted Octavia with a faint glimmer of hope.

“I’m afraid not ma’am…there was another murder tonight…well attempted murder, thankfully it was interrupted before anypony was hurt.”

“No…not more…who was it?”

Fair Breeze took a deep breath, “Your ensemble partner Beauty Brass.”

Octavia’s face went completely white as her pupils shrunk to small dots. Her breathing rate increased and for a moment Fair Breeze thought she was going to hyperventilate before she clasped a hoof to her chest to calm herself.

“B-B-Brass! Where is she?! Is she alright?!” she spluttered quickly, her face filled with fear.

“Please try and relax ma’am, your friend is perfectly fine. She is currently being cared for at the Royal Infirmary Hospital. I have already spoken to her tonight to ask her about what happened.”

Octavia didn’t seem to be listening, or at least her mind was winding up on its own. She pressed her front hooves against her chest, looking directly at Fair Breeze as her breathing once again began to increase.

“Is…is that why you came tonight? You think I’m in danger? You think I might be next? Gleaming, Fleur, Brass…me? What have I done? I’ve never hurt another pony in my life! I’ve never broken the law! Why would somepony want to kill me? Why would…?”

“Miss Melody please calm down!” interrupted Fair Breeze as he leaped to his hooves and crossed to where Octavia was sat, “If you are in danger we will make sure you are safe. You have my word as a royal guard!”

He gently placed a hoof on her shoulder firmly causing the earth pony to look up at him. He could see the fear in her eyes, the reams of unanswered questions and the pain of the previous few days. For a moment her eyes just glistened at him, the light reflecting in her tears, before she threw herself at him and burst into tears. Fair Breeze had to take a step backwards to steady himself but as Octavia continued to cry he couldn’t help but cradle her gently. He sighed and allowed himself to relax slightly.

It was only the sound of a twig snapping outside the far window that brought him back to reality. He released Octavia and spun towards the sound, eyeing the window suspiciously. He raised a hoof, edging Octavia behind him as the mare went rigid with renewed fear. For a moment he stood still watching the window; was it just the wind or could it be the killer? The moment of silence seemed to last forever but then a rustle came again. Fair Breeze was about to move when a sudden crash outside caused him to pause. There was a yelp and a cry and then silence. Fair Breeze looked back at Octavia who was now looking more quizzical than afraid and then back at the window. There were more rustling sounds now accompanied by heavy breathing which caused Fair Breeze to frown slightly.

Motioning for Octavia to stay put he slowly approached the window. He remained out of sight for a moment and then in one fluid motion swung round, opened the curtains and looked outside. The face of Lilac Bloom met him squarely in the eyes causing him to jump backwards in fright. It also caused a similar reaction for Lilac, the Pegasus jumping back slightly at the sudden reveal. Fair Breeze felt his eye twitch slightly and he quickly threw open the window.

“Warrant Officer?! What in Celestia’s name are you doing creeping around in the bushes making crashing sounds?! You scared Miss Melody and I half to death!” he barked loudly.

“Sir! Sorry sir!” replied Lilac as she saluted quickly and went completely rigid, “After I alerted the guard I reported to the hospital as per your orders but was told you had come here following information you had gleaned from interviewing Miss Brass. I flew over immediately only to see something moving about in the bushes. Given the situation I dived straight in and…well I think I caught our suspect sir!”

“Caught our suspect?”

Fair Breeze pushed his head out of the window and looked down. On the ground below Lilac was the partially unconscious form of a white unicorn. Even in the dim light it was possible to see the hoof print shaped mark on the back of her head where Lilac had ‘dived straight in’. Despite the smug look of satisfaction on Lilac’s face though Fair Breeze could only sigh and press his own hoof against his forehead.

“That’s not our culprit Lilac…that’s the pony who stopped the culprit from committing their third murder tonight.”

For a moment Lilac pulled a quizzical face as if she was trying to work out if her commander was joking or not. When his expression didn’t change though Lilac looked back down at the stunned pony with a look of building horror and realisation.

“I…sir…I mean…that is…” she stammered quickly as she tried to work out what to say.

“Just…bring her inside alright, she can recover on a sofa,” he said with a sigh as he shut the window and turned back to Octavia, “False alarm, nothing to worry about.”

Octavia looked shocked more than anything, the whole event being a little too much for her in her current state. She slumped back into a chair and let out a very traumatised sigh. Fair Breeze stepped past her and made his way to the front door to let Lilac in. Vinyl herself was draped across her back moaning softly to herself but as of yet still unable to really speak.

“You didn’t use the full routine on her did you?” he asked.

“Afraid so sir,” grinned Lilac sheepishly, “I took my physical protection training very seriously as a cadet.”

Fair Breeze shook his head and led them back to the lounge where Octavia was still looking utterly drained.

“Put her down in a seat over there,” instructed Fair Breeze as they entered the room.

As Lilac trotted over to put the stunned pony in a chair Octavia finally looked up. For a moment she just looked at the pony draped across Lilac’s back and then her eyes went wide in shock.

“What…what is she doing here?!” she asked quickly.

“I’m sorry for the intrusion Miss Melody, I wasn’t expecting to put this on you,” replied Fair Breeze, “This is the pony that saved your friend Beauty Brass tonight, if what she has told me is correct you know each other.”

“K-Know each other…” stammered Octavia, her voice quivering between fright and rage, “W-Why would I know some pony like THAT!”

Fair Breeze raised an eyebrow at the outburst, there was something going on here.

“Is something wrong?” he asked slowly.

“Wrong?” replied Octavia, a faint chuckle escaping her lips, “What could possibly be wrong? First my manager is murdered, then my close friend and now you tell me that one of my ensemble members has just been saved by this…this…thing! Then you say I could be in danger as well! What could be wrong? What could poss…”

“Tavi…?”

The new voice made everypony stop and turn around. Vinyl lay on the sofa, her eyes barely open as she looked at Octavia.

“I’m so glad you’re alright,” she continued with a faint smile.

“You’re…you’re glad?” twitched Octavia as the last of her poise and restraint finally left her, “You’re glad?! How dare you even speak to me you pathetic little rat! Get out! Everypony OUT! NOW! I can’t deal with this! I don’t want to deal with this! Get out! Get out get out get out get out GET OUT!”

As if to emphasise her point whatever pieces of loose furniture that happened to be around her started sailing through the air. A vase and its floral contents, a framed picture, several books and an empty wine glass were amongst some of the items that quickly filled the air before they smashed into pieces on the floor. Fair Breeze and Lilac Bloom both dived for cover as the items started to fly; Vinyl taking to just curling up into a ball to try and shield herself. Deciding it was best to make a quick exit Fair Breeze motioned to Lilac who in turn darted from cover, scooped up Vinyl and high tailed it towards the door as Fair Breeze followed suit.

Even as they swept down the corridor and out of the front door the sound of items crashing against the floor still filled the air but soon after it stopped. Fair Breeze paused to look at the front door and sighed as the new sound of heavy sobbing filtered through. Glancing back at Lilac he found her helping Vinyl to her feet who in turn looked somewhere between stunned and terrified.

“Well that could have gone better,” he commented to himself, “Lilac! Why don’t you head back inside and see if you can calm her down, you’re probably better suited than I for that task. I’ll arrange for a guard duty to be put in place as soon as I’m back at the barrack. For now just keep an eye on things and keep Miss Melody safe, we’ll continue our questioning in the morning.”

“Yes sir!” replied Lilac before heading sheepishly back towards the front door.

“As for you Miss Scratch,” continued Fair Breeze as he cast a glower at Vinyl, “walk with me.”

Vinyl didn’t argue, instead choosing to give a dejected sigh as she followed the earth pony.

“You realise I could very well have you up on charges for interfering with a royal guard investigation?” continued Fair Breeze, “I instructed you not to get involved…and I definitely said nothing about sneaking around outside windows in the middle of the night!”

“I know, I know…it’s just…” Vinyl gave a sigh, “I…I just had to make sure she was ok.”

“Well as you can clearly see she isn’t. And now I have to ask why it matters so much to you that she is alright? From what you told me you haven’t seen each other in years.”

Once again Vinyl gave a sigh, “Can we sit down?”

Fair Breeze gave a nod, indicating to a nearby bench. As the pair sat down Fair Breeze waited for an explanation, it may not be information that linked directly to the case but Vinyl was linked to the case now and the more he knew about her the better.

“Back in the hospital…when I said Octavia and I were friends back in college…I guess it was a little more than that,” began Vinyl.

“You two were involved with each other?” asked Fair Breeze.

“You could say that…we…we both loved each other and we even talked about living together after college. But if there was one thing Octavia loved more than me it was her music. She would play for hours without pausing or even opening her eyes. It was quite transfixing to watch…so much so that I found myself drawn into it. Before I knew what was happening I was learning the double bass to play alongside her cello. Truthfully it wasn’t my kind of music but I felt like I’d do anything for her. Over time though I guess Tavi got a little too used to having me around, she started taking things for granted, expecting me to do things without even asking if I was available or even capable. It started causing a bit of friction and one night I just had to get away from it for a while.”

Vinyl paused and sighed once more, “I ended up in one of the local clubs, don’t really know what possessed me to go in, never been to one before that night. I sat and listened to the music for a while, it wasn’t anything special at first but eventually this one DJ came on stage. His music was…just wow, it hit chords inside me that I never knew existed and before I knew it I was in the middle of the dance floor shaking flank with the rest of the ponies. It was then that I decided that that was the type of music I wanted to make. Music that could make you move, twitch and spin. It was a big step away from the classical stuff I’d been doing before but honestly that stuff had never appealed to me in the first place.”

“So the next morning I wake up in my room and I can’t remember much apart from the music. Wish I’d never woken up to be honest. When I met Octavia that morning we had a massive argument. I told her about the new music I wanted to play and she accused me of abandoning her! Things got rather heated after that on both sides but it ended with Octavia saying she never wanted to see me again. That was the last time I spoke to her before tonight. Despite everything though I still loved her and I still cared about her. Our lives went in separate directions after that day but I still kept tabs on her from the shadows…I could never pluck up enough courage to actually speak to her. I doubt she has feelings for me anymore now…and that just makes it feel even worse.”

Vinyl slowly raised a hoof to her chest, sniffing slightly as tears threatened to escape the corner of her eyes. Fair Breeze gave a sigh of his own.

“I’m sorry to have to dredge up painful memories Miss Scratch and I want to thank you for being so open and candid with me,” he replied slowly, “I will make sure that no charges are pressed but I will have to ask you to keep your distance from Miss Melody for the time being.”

Vinyl gave a small nod.

“Now then, allow me to walk you home,” continued Fair Breeze, “I’ll arrange for a guard to be at your abode by morning just in case any further problems occur.”

Again Vinyl nodded, it seemed she had said enough for one night.